The game, hailed by the
industry as one of the milestones of Vietnam's startup history, has brought
Dong great fame and fortune, all within a short period of time.

Now Dong is making a
pledge to pay it forward and fund Vietnamese startups in the fields
of robotics, artificial intelligence, social services, community development
and education.

“Just propose those
projects to me, no matter how bad it is,” he wrote on his Facebook page.

He did not give specific
details about mentoring and funding.

Flappy Bird was released
in May 2013 with little fanfare. By February 2014, the sleeper hit topped the
charts in more than 100 countries and had been downloaded more than 50 million
times. Dong reportedly earned an estimated $50,000 a day.

The Vietnamese
government has seen successes like Flappy Bird as an encouraging sign. It is
trying hard to cultivate a startup scene where tech entrepreneurs can create
products and services that will go global.

Unlike the
well-developed startup ecosystem in most other countries, where there are
venture capitalists and a strong network of entrepreneurs working together, the
system in Vietnam is at a
fledgling stage, with many funding difficulties.